I do not own Call of Duty.

The Ten Years

2016 August

The Early Days

California

Looking back on it now, I realize that the early days of the war represented much more than the base struggle for survival. At the time, it'd felt primal. Hell had found it's mark on earth, and the people were ill-prepared for it. That's what it'd seemed like at the time.

But now, I can see that it was a test. It was a rite of passage. Our home had become the proving grounds. Those who could pick up the pieces and move on were the ones who lasted. The rest didn't.

It's strange though. I can't really remember anything of what happened before the attack. It's as if my life never existed beyond the war. It nearly made me cry one night. Because it's hard for me to recall the days when I was a kid. My memories are just... fragmented. Of the early days of the occupation, I can't tell where one memory ends and one begins.

But I do remember that Logan was always there with me.

Beneath a misty atmosphere of drizzling rain laid a battered web of various buildings and structures, all linked together by winding streets and tight alleys. Apartment buildings stretched from one horizon to the next, and all of them were the same. Overhead, the sky was a depressing, sickly grey color, and the sun fought with it to pierce the veil to cast light on the weakened city below. Even the birds had decided to stay home this day.

Military vehicles roamed these occupied streets, policing the captured area with a vile swiftness. Armed soldiers walked the roads in pairs, clad in the dark-colored armor of the Federation, sporting powerful assault rifles. A helicopter scanned the city from above, like a hawk, eagerly awaiting it's prey to make a mistake. Atop some of the key buildings in this particular area were the flags of the Federation, proudly proclaiming their conquest of this city. This military power had complete dominion over this place. It was undeniable.

Of interesting note was the local library, located near the center of this urban sprawl, sitting tightly with the flags of it's masters flying on top of it. There was a crowd near the entrance to it. Over a hundred civilians, the people who'd been taken by this occupation, were standing in a tight mass that resembled the faintest makings of a straight line. They were being directed by armed guards. There was a small amount of order. The rest of it was chaos, and fear, and terror. These people were gathered in front of the library for a reason.

It was a supply distribution center. And there was only so much that the Federation was willing to give out.

Madness, indeed.

And Logan, along with David, was caught up in the middle of it. Logan heard the shouts, and the pleading, and the shuffling of the crowd. He felt the heat, and the fear, and the shoving as well. It was all around him. Like a blanket of disorder, shrouding his every breathe. Every other week was this same process, and he still hadn't gotten used to it. The gathering of the masses struck a unique chord within Logan. It was a mixture of emotions, all bottled up into one entity, and it consumed him. He was being swamped in this sea of people.

David led the way through the crowd. They had to gain ground, slipping and brushing and shoving their way past the others. They had to get one of the supply bags. It was imperative. So Logan kept up with his brother as they made their way forward.

The 'Distribution Center' itself was actually a handful of Federation military troop transports, all of which were loaded down with a limited supply of bags that contained necessities. They showed up in this part of the city about once every 2 weeks. Most of the time, it took longer. This was how the Federation was handling the occupation for right now. The people who'd been caught up in the storm were rounded up into major cities and put under martial law. Since the United States military was pushed back, the civilians who were left over were under the control of the Federation. This was how it worked, and Logan and Hesh were a part of that cycle. So being out here to get one of the supply bags was critical.

The local library served as the location of this center. It was a massive building, dominating the scenery with all purpose. It commanded the appreciation of eyes as it stood proudly in the middle of the city. What had once stood as a beacon of learning and hope for Americans was now a main military headquarters building for the Federation. It was their center of operations for not only the city, but the entire part of the state as well. The walkway entrance for it was large enough to hold several transport vehicles, and still have plenty of room left over.

Logan and David had made it to the front. Federation soldiers were throwing the bags to the people; one group at a time, and one bag for a group. They were picking the people at random to come forth and get a bag. Logan watched as the process repeated itself over and over. He suppressed the anger within him, keeping himself as calm as possible. Being calm allowed for clear thinking, and he needed to think clearly.

"You!" A Federation soldier said harshly, pointing a gloved finger at David. "You're next. Who is with you?"

"It's just me and my brother." David told him.

"Both of you, go ahead." The soldier told them. "You know the consequences if you are caught lying to us."

So they both stepped forward to the nearest transport vehicle. There were two Federation soldiers standing on the back of it. One of them sported a high-powered SMG, loosely pointing it in the general direction of Logan and David. The look on his face was impassive; careless. Prepared to kill a thief at a moment's notice. The other soldier had his weapon slung behind his back, reaching for one of the bags. He hefted it and then tossed it on the ground. It landed in a heap, right in front of David.

That was all they were getting.

"Take it and leave. Now." The first Federation soldier told them. The one who'd pointed his gloved finger at David.

David picked up the bag with both hands and signaled for Logan to come. Instead of going back the way they'd come, they were directed to leave down the side entrance of the library. They moved fast, eager to get back to their 'home'. Behind them, the Federation soldier was picking out another person from the crowd. It was a scene that Logan was glad to leave behind. So he walked alongside David as they made their way down a short flight of stairs leading to the street.

The road was noticeably less chaotic than the front side of the library. Mostly everyone they could see was either heading away from the library, or going to it. No one stopped to speak to anyone. Nobody sat around loitering. Everyone was on a mission to get from point A to point B. It was as simple as that.

For Logan and David, their point B was Housing Center 1B. It was the place that they lived their life now. The Federation had these housing centers arranged in specific orders, and everyone lived in an apartment. The west side of town was where the B-designated housing centers were located. Each center was secured with a large gate, surrounding it completely, with only one entrance. If a person was out past the curfew, then they would be stuck outside the gate for the night. It was harsh, but the Federation gave no damn.

They were headed to HC 1B.

"I swear man. It gets worse and worse every time." David said.

"I know. I can't stand it." Logan replied, shaking his head.

"We can't put up with this. We gotta do something."

"Like what? What can we do?"

"We gotta find Elias. I know a way to do that."

Logan looked at David. "You know where dad is?" he asked.

"I don't know where, but I know how to find him." David told him. Then he lowered his voice. "The library. This is a major city, and they're still targeting the nearby resistance cells. Elias has to be with one of them. And I know for a fact that the library has some kind of tactical map or something in there that we could get our hands on. Some piece of information."

Logan thought for a moment, and then thought for another moment. He blinked twice. "How do you think we're gonna manage to do that? Get one of those maps? How do you even know that there's one in there?"

"It's worth a shot, to me. Somebody needs to do something, and that needs to be us. Remember what Elias told us about -".

David was cut off. Someone ran into him, hard, and knocked the supply bag from his hands.

"David!" Logan yelled.

The attacker got up quick and snatched the bag from the ground, running away. Logan rushed over to David and stooped next to him.

"I'm fine. I'm good." David said, rolling onto his back, a grimace spreading across his face.

Logan nodded and then looked up. Their attacker was running away with their bag. He couldn't let it get away. They depended on those bags too much.

So Logan broke off in a full-blown sprint, chasing the thief. He ran, and ran. People watched from afar as he pursued the attacker. Logan focused on building up as much momentum as he could. He wasn't the fastest out there, but he wasn't slow. Especially when it came down to something like this. He had to go faster. He wasn't gaining any ground. And he didn't know how long he could keep this up.

The attacker looked over his shoulder at Logan for a brief moment, and then cut to the right, down an alleyway. Logan followed suit, leaning into the turn, keeping his speed up. There was a dumpster in the middle of the alley, knocked over by something from before, lying on its front. Instead of circling around it like the thief did, Logan slid across it. He had to keep his momentum up, or he would never catch the guy.

They continued down the alley, still running at full speed. Stray pieces of paper were blown out of the way in the process. Up ahead was a fence, separating one half of the alley from the other. The attacker tossed the bag over it and proceeded to climb the fence. He climbed it slow.

Logan sprinted full-speed to the fence and used his momentum to carry him up the fence as fast as he could. It took him only 2 steps. He clambered onto the top of it, and then leaped down onto the attacker, landing on him with all his weight.

They hit the ground hard. Logan felt it in his bones. Instead of complaining about the pain, he slipped his arm beneath the neck of the attacker and began choking him. They tussled and rolled on the ground, struggling and fighting. The thief tucked his legs in and lifted himself up, while Logan still had him in the headlock. An elbow caught Logan in the side of the head, blurring his vision and sending a sharp pain through his skull. And he loosed his grip. The attacker took advantage of this, turning and swinging a left-handed blow.

It connected and snapped Logan's head to the side. Without wasting time, the attacker threw a right handed punch. This time, Logan threw his arm up and the blow glanced off of his forearm. And then Logan threw a straight jab, slamming his fist directly into his opponent's face. Instead of throwing another blow, he whipped his head forward and smashed his forehead into the attacker's nose, breaking it.

While the thief was stunned, holding his face in pain, Logan grabbed him by the shirt and shoved him into the wall of the alley, head first. The attacker fell to the ground instantly, in a bloody heap, and Logan stumbled back.

Logan rested his hands on his knees, breathing heavily, ignoring the searing pain in his head. He couldn't think straight. He couldn't even stand. So he backed into the wall and slumped to the ground. It was all he could do to keep himself from groaning in pain. There was blood on his shirt, but he was too tired, too worn to even care if it was his. He rested his head back against the wall. Everything in his body felt as if it were on fire.

The attacker lie motionless on the ground. It was over.

"Shit." Logan muttered.